Follow Their Husbands: A Comparative Analysis

Some husbands came to the conclusion that a compromise would be best and followed their wives into the same church while others decided neither Baptist nor Methodist would suit them and stayed clear of any church. According to Peter Cartright, those who chose to stay clear of any church were usually drunkards, profane swearers, gamblers, fiddlers, and dancers. Men often saw religion and attending church as weak or not masculine. Some husbands and fathers decided that they were rulers of the household and concluded that their wives and other family members would not indulge in such extreme faiths. If both husband and wife were attending the same church and both seeking a conversion experience, the husband had to experience the conversion first. If the wife experienced the conversion before her husband, she would be considered spiritually superior to her mate. This was a big conflict within many households. Other men found

themselves humoring their wives religious sensibilities to maintain peace in the household.

They did not want to argue with their wives, nor jeopardize their family unit. Many men, attempting to uphold their male honor did not require that their wives share the same religious views; however, according to the monograph, “preserving manly independence did mean that husbands would keep their own counsel on religious matters and that wives would refrain from challenging those view too often or too forthrightly.” Despite the opinion of their husband, women did not give up on spreading the gospel. They continued on with their evangelical worship.

One man who especially disliked women who held strong to their evangelical beliefs was Jerimiah Norman. Norman not only hated women who contested his authority, but he loathed wives

who dominated their husbands in religious matters. Norman had a great dislike for any strong women who openly spoke her mind or expressed her religious views. One of his colleagues, John Taylor, also disliked outspoken women and felt great disgust toward females who attempted to dominate over males. Some preachers, “encouraged women to share their religious ideas, but frowned upon them when they came forth too often or too forcefully.” Some pastors admitted they admired women who could move audiences, but did not approve when they outshone the men and even confessed to fears of being upstaged by rival female virtuosos. The pastors encouraged their female counterparts to express their beliefs, but no to be disrespectful to men. In one account Rev. James B. Finley discusses when a women within the congregation stood up during his sermon and began to prophecy. Finley asked her to wait until his sermon was completed before she began exhorting. Finley, like many other pastors and itinerants believed there was a time and place for women to speak . These men weren’t the only people feeling as if their authority was being challenged. Many husbands felt extremely vulnerable as their wives tried to dictate their religious loyalties. Husband’s often felt as if they were losing control over themselves, their wives, and their households. Many outspoken, dominant women brought forth their husbands’ deepest anxieties about the loss of masculine independence and honor. Wives had to be especially careful to continue on with their religious freedom and keep their household together.